BATON ROUGE – The LSU Center for Energy Studies will host Energy Summit 2010 on Oct. 26 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Dalton J. Woods Auditorium in the Energy, Coast & Environment Building on the LSU campus. In the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon incident, the focus of this year’s program will be deepwater exploration and the future of the Gulf of Mexico.

John Hofmeister, former president of Shell and author of the recent book “Why We Hate the Oil Companies,” will be a featured speaker. Hofmeister, CEO of the energy education foundation Citizens for Affordable Energy and a recognized leader in the energy industry, has provided valuable insight in the national media into the effects of the spill on the industry. His talk is titled “Addressing Our Future Energy Dilemmas.”

James Diffley, managing director of the U.S. regional services group for IHS Global Insight, an international forecasting company, will discuss the future of independent oil companies in the Gulf. Public perceptions of spills and offshore activity will be the topic of Jim Lucier, a managing director for Capital Alpha Partners LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based investment advisory company.

The future of the offshore oil and gas insurance market, in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon incident, will be the topic of Barbara Slanis, senior vice president of Willis Group Holdings energy practice. Rice University professor of economics Peter Hartley will speak on state oil companies operating in the Gulf, and attorney Carl Rosenblum of Jones Walker will discuss legal concerns facing operators there.

The program wraps with a session by Andrew Robertson of The Moody Company on the outlook for young professionals in the energy industry.

The registration fee covers breakfast, a buffet lunch and reception. Attorneys may earn continuing legal education credits, and engineering professionals may earn professional development hours.